March Country Days

1st March, St David's Day The Patron St of Wales. The start of meteorological spring and this year also Shove Tuesday or Pancake day. I bought a lemon last week to be able to have proper old-fashioned pancakes today.............none of those modern or foreign ideas like chocolate spread, strawberries or maple syrup for this old Suffolk Country Gal!

2nd................ Ash Wednesday (more on this tomorrow).

 

17th...........St Patrick's Day. Patron Saint of Ireland 

 

20th........ Vernal Equinox, the start of Astronomical spring and Ostara, The Pagan festival celebrating Eostre, Goddess of Spring. 

 

25th..........Lady Day

 

27th Change the clocks and Mothering Sunday too

c  In the Roman calendar March,or Martius, was the first month of a new year. The month was named after Mars, the god of war and the guardian of agriculture. March was the month when both farming and warfare could begin again after winter. (There have always been wars waiting to start)

The Saxons called it Lentmonat, or lengthening month, because of the equinox and lengthening of days and this is the origin of the word Lent. By the end of the month there will be two extra hours of daylight and we change clocks to BST on the the 27th, which is also Mothering Sunday.

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Everyone knows this rhyme

March winds and April showers

Bring forth May flowers.

Also.....................March month of many weathers 

 

In one book I have is this rhyme, explaining the first three Saints of March. Although neither Chad or Winneral get a mention in my Calendar of Saints book. The rhyme is thought to explain the windy weather often through the month.

First comes David

Then comes Chad

Then comes Winneral

As though he were mad

 

As promised, here is another gorgeous Spring illustration from the book ' A Sparrows Life's as Sweet as Ours'

 Rooks this time. I expect almost every village in the country has or had a Rookery Farm. As the trees at the top of out smallholding field gradually got taller through the 23 years we were there, the rooks moved in and there would be half a dozen nests each spring.

I found this poem written for children

The Rooks

 

The rooks are building on the trees;
They build there every spring:
‘Caw, caw,’ is all they say,
For none of them can sing.

They're up before the break of day,
And up till late at night;
For they must labour busily
As long as it is light.

And many a crooked stick they bring,
And many a slender twig,
And many a tuft of moss, until
Their nests are round and big.

‘Caw, caw.’ Oh, what a noise
They make in rainy weather!
Good children always speak by turns,
But rooks all talk together.

 

by  Jane Euphemia Browne 1811 - 1898

 

 

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